Ald. Carrie Austin asks to be declared medically unfit for bribery trial; will resign from City Council
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Ald. Carrie Austin (34th), who was indicted on federal bribery charges last year, is asking a judge to declare her medically unfit to stand trial.
Austin also has announced plans to resign from the City Council in March.
Austin and her chief of staff, Chester Wilson Jr., were indicted last year on federal charges accusing them of taking bribes from a construction company seeking Austin's support for a development in her ward.
Austin's attorneys want the judge in their case to sever Austin's and Wilson's cases, and declare Austin unfit to stand trial.
In a motion filed in federal court on Friday, Austin's attorneys said she suffers from several ailments that have left her unable to sufficiently help her attorneys prepare for trials – including a history of heart problems and gastrointestinal problems, and a prior bout with breast cancer.
"Needless to say, Ms. Austin, a widow who is now 73 years old, has endured tremendous medical challenges in the past few years alone. While many of these medical problems have plagued Ms. Austin since at least the 1990s … her overall condition has only worsened in the past few years, and particularly so under the heightened stress of this case and her efforts to complete her Aldermanic term as best as she could under the circumstances," her attorneys wrote.
While Austin resigned her post as chair of the City Council Committee on Contracting Oversight and Equity after she was indicted last year, and announced that she would not seek another term in office in 2023, she has continued to attend City Council meetings and committee meetings. Last December, she collapsed in her seat during a City Council meeting, and was taken to the hospital to be checked out.
Austin's attorneys said that her doctors have prescribed her a portable oxygen concentrator to use wherever she goes, and have advised her to avoid undue stress, and get extra rest whenever possible, making it a challenge for her to help prepare for trial.
"Ms. Austin has only been minimally able to assist counsel in the review of the voluminous discovery materials in this case. Nor has she been able to participate in in-person or Zoom conferences for much more than an hour or two at most," the motion states.
"Ms. Austin is not medically fit to stand trial based on these serious medical conditions. This representation is not made lightly. It is made in good faith and out of an abundance of concern that Ms. Austin simply will not make it through the stress of trial or the difficult pretrial preparation," her attorneys added. "If the truth be told, counsel had to threaten to withdraw if Ms. Austin did not consent to the filing of this motion. She is a proud and good woman and did not want this motion filed—just like she would not resign from the Council in December 2021. This is very, very difficult for her; but it is the only right decision under the circumstances. Neither this Court, nor the government, should risk the loss of a life over these charges. Failing to resolve them may disappoint both parties, but such a failure will not cause the collapse of our Republic."
As part of their motion to have Austin declared unfit for trial, her attorneys said she is being forced to resign from the City Council, effective March 1, 2023.
In the resignation letter sent to Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Austin wrote, "I have come to the conclusion that as much as I would prefer to finish out my term, my medical condition will not permit me to do so."
Austin is the second longest-serving member of the City Council, having represented the 34th Ward on the Far South Side since 1994, when she took over for her late husband, Lemuel Austin, who died of a heart attack.
Her resignation would become effective after the upcoming municipal elections in February.
